Shellfish initiative hopes to define policy

Monday

Apr 10, 2017 at 10:05 PM

By Rich Eldred reldred@wickedlocal.com

BREWSTER -- It started with alarm over a bill in the state Legislature that, according to Melissa Sanderson of the Cape Cod Commercial Fisherman's Alliance, would privatize portions of Massachusetts coastal shellfish waters (for oyster sanctuaries) with little input from the public that utilizes those resources.

In order to gain input from shellfishermen, the Alliance, along with the Massachusetts Aquaculture Association and the Nature Conservancy, have formed the Massachusetts Shellfish Initiative. They've partnered with the University of Massachusetts to conduct a statewide survey of shell fishermen of all sorts to collect their concerns and suggestion for future policy. Tuesday and Wednesday that survey team stopped in Wellfleet and Harwich. Yesterday they were in Duxbury and next week they'll be on the North Shore.

"The goal is to maximize the economic benefit of shellfish resources and manage competing demands," Sanderson told a crowd at the Harwich Community Center. ""Hopefully this will be developed by shellfish harvesters and bring into existence new shellfish projects and leverage community support."

This process has been successful in other states such as Washington. The last time Massachusetts updated its aquaculture goals was 1975. Sanderson and the Department of Environmental Protection and National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) want to hear from the shellfish community. The goal is to have a plan or set of recommendations to present to the governor.

Aquaculture in Massachusetts has grown 430 percent since 2011. There are now 331 permits statewide and grants covering 1,128 acres. While there is increased interest both in commercial and recreation shellfishing, as well as using shellfish to cleanse waters. there are also more closures for noroviruses, battles over size limits and threats of state vs. local regulation.

So three biology graduate students from UMass have put together a 20-minute survey questions relating to peoples participation in shell fishing, their worries, what they'd like to see and what could be improved. The survey was handed out at the meeting Monday and is available online. At the end of the process, when data is collected and sifted trough the Alliance and other groups want to refine and draft four to eight issues to bring forward, determined by public input and future presentations, refine it again once the public sees the draft, and hand it to relevant officials around a year from now.

The students were hoping to have the surveys done by mid-May but may need to spend more time on outreach. Some of the fishermen present noted a lot of their comrades were unaware of this project and more time and effort was needed to reach them.

'This is not a lot of time. Just over a month," noted Suzanne Phillips of Orleans. "You've got to have someone out there to explain why you're doing it."

Chatham Shellfish Constable Renee Gagne said they'd just started selling permits and recreation shell fishermen who become active in the summer would be missed by the surveys.

There were concerns about regulations. Others worried about pollution and that public misconceptions about shell fish diseases tarnished all of Cape Cod when one harbor is shut down.

Ron Bergstrom, a shell fisherman who has served as a selectman and county elected officer, hopes the initiative can make officials aware of the financial importance of shellfishing.

"This is the stake we have in the economy and that stake has to be defended. This is a multi-million dollar industry," he said. "In Boston you lose a job you go on unemployment. On Cape Cod you get a shellfish license for $200. It is a fallback for many people and without it they'd be in trouble."

"There's also the recreation component and that in itself has value," added Gagne, "and not just for the value of the shellfish but the environmental value because people get involved with the environment."

The biology graduate students carrying out the survey are Catie Tobin, Sean McNally and Patrick Sheldon and the survey can be accessed at https//tinyurl.com/msisurvey2017. Questions and concerns can go to amanda.peters001@umb.edu , sean.mcnally001@umb.edu or catherinetobin001@umb.edu .